Privacy, terms, disclaimer, and accessibility.

Privacy

What we collect

If you use the contact form on this site, it opens your own email program with a message written out. Nothing is transmitted to us until you press send in your own email program. What we then receive is whatever you chose to send: your name, email, phone number if you gave one, the state and nature of the matter, and your description of it.

If you call or email us directly, we have whatever you tell us.

What we do not collect

We do not ask for, and you should not send us, your Social Security number, date of birth, bank account or login details, credit or debit card numbers, driver's license number, or images of your identification. Not through this website, and not in an initial email or call.

Server logs

This site is served from Amazon Web Services. Standard web-server logs may record the IP address, browser type, page requested, and time of a request. These logs are used to keep the site running and secure.

Cookies and tracking

This site sets no cookies and runs no advertising or tracking scripts. There is nothing to opt out of, which is why there is no cookie banner.

Who else sees your information

We use service providers to operate the business — a website host, an email provider, and DocuSign for signing and remote notarization. They handle information on our behalf and under their own terms. We do not sell your personal information, and we do not sell sensitive personal information. We do not share it for advertising.

How long we keep it

Inquiries that do not lead to an engagement are kept only as long as needed to respond and to keep our own records straight, and then discarded. Records relating to an engagement are kept as long as the law and our professional obligations require.

Security

We take reasonable measures to protect information in our possession. No method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee that email is private in transit. That is one of several reasons we do not want sensitive identifiers sent to us by email.

Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to ask what personal information we hold about you, to ask for a copy, to ask us to correct it, or to ask us to delete it. Write to locator@zmelting.com and we will respond.

Children

This site is not directed to children, and we do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18.

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Terms of use

What this site is

This website provides general information about ZMelt LLC and the work we do. It is offered as it is, without warranties of any kind.

No engagement is created by using this site

Visiting this site, sending the contact form, calling us, or emailing us does not make you a client. It does not create an investigator–client, attorney–client, fiduciary, or agency relationship, and it does not obligate either of us to do anything.

We work only under a written agreement, signed by you, that sets out the scope, the fee, and what each side is responsible for. Until that agreement is signed, no work is underway.

Case acceptance

We are not obliged to accept any matter. We decline cases that are outside our authority, that cannot be verified, that are legally restricted, or where the work would cost more than the recovery is worth.

Your responsibilities

Information you give us must be accurate to the best of your knowledge. You may not use this site to submit false information or to misrepresent your identity or your connection to a property.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the law of the State of Iowa.

Changes

We may update these terms. The date at the top of this page shows when they were last reviewed.

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Disclaimer

We are not the government

ZMelt LLC is a privately owned company, licensed as a private investigation agency by the Iowa Department of Public Safety under agency license PI00613. We are not a state treasury, a court, a county office, a sheriff's office, or any government unclaimed-property program. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any of them.

You can act on your own behalf

In many cases, property can be searched for and claimed directly through the official program, at no cost, without hiring anyone. That option is yours whether or not you speak with us, and we will tell you when we think it is the better one.

No advice

Nothing on this site is legal, tax, probate, accounting, or financial advice. We do not provide legal services and we do not represent anyone in court. Where a matter requires legal representation, we work with licensed legal counsel.

No promises

We do not promise that any money exists, that a claim will be approved, that any amount will be recovered, or how long anything will take. Those decisions belong to the agency, county, or court holding the property. We can prepare the strongest claim the facts support; we cannot decide the outcome.

Jurisdiction

Whether we can assist with a matter depends on where the property is, that jurisdiction's requirements, and applicable law. We will tell you at the outset whether we can act.

Fraud warning

We will never ask for your Social Security number, bank login, card number, gift cards, cryptocurrency, wire transfer, or remote access to your device through this website or in unsolicited contact. If someone claiming to be from ZMelt LLC asks for any of these, it is not us. Call (319) 850-4215.

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Accessibility

We want this site to work for everyone, including people using screen readers, keyboard navigation, or magnification. It is built with semantic HTML, visible keyboard focus, a skip-to-content link, text that resizes, contrast that meets WCAG 2.1 AA, and respect for reduced-motion settings. There are no popups, autoplaying media, or motion traps.

If something on this site is hard to use or does not work with your assistive technology, tell us and we will fix it. Write to locator@zmelting.com or call (319) 850-4215, and we will also give you the information you were after by whatever means works for you.